Advance Review: Grumpy Cat Rules The Roost In `Star Trek: Discovery – Adventures In The 32nd Century’ #1

The Star Trek franchise has a long history of pets, dating all the way back to Christopher Pike’s horse Tango, Jean-Luc Picard’s lionfish Livingston and Jonathan Archer’s beagle Porthos.

That tradition continues in Star Trek: Discovery with Grudge, the cat companion of interplanetary courier Cleveland Booker. (Or as Grudge refers to him, “my lobal human.”) Grudge takes center stage in the initial installment of Star Trek: Discovery – Adventures in the 32^nd Century, a four-part anthology series spotlighting some of the series’ secondary characters.

Trek purists concerned that devoting an entire story to a feline can rest easy. While the stakes are low in this premiere issue, the storytelling, character development and humor are set to kill. Writer Mike Johnson channels his inner Grumpy Cat to tell the story of a cat that calls herself a queen. Told from Grudge’s point of view, Johnson gives voice and a hilarious humanity to Book’s feline friend. Grudge is exactly the kind of cat you expect her to be. Bold. Imperious. Demanding.

When Discovery arrives, Grudge is given a new space to explore – rule really – and new being to serve her whims. She even manages to eek out a modicum of respect for irascible Paul Stamets, who complains when Drudge boldly goes into the engineering section of the ship.

Artist Angel Hernandez does a good job of clueing us into Grudge’s many moods, even without having to rely on Johnson’s words to tell us what she’s thinking. Luckily, Hernandez also captures the likenesses of Michael Burnham, Saru, Jett Reno and the rest of Discovery’s crew, because Grudge has little interest in actually learning their names.

With such a strong start to the series, the only downside is that the Grudge will be relegated into the background once again. That’s no place for a queen.

Star Trek: Discovery – Adventures in the 32^nd Century #1 will be available for purchase on March 2, 2022.